City of Chelsea, MA - General Code as of January 2000

In the construction of the Ordinances of the City of Chelsea, 1994, the following rules of construction shall be observed, unless such construction would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the city council, the context of the provisions of the ordinances, or unless other definitions are laid out in the individual chapter.

Administrative code shall mean the Administrative Code of the City of Chelsea, enacted pursuant to section 6-1 of the City Charter as most recently amended, and shall refer to the organization, functions, and procedures of the city agencies.

Ordinances shall mean The Ordinances of the City of Chelsea, 1994 as most recently amended, and shall refer to those vote or orders of the city council designed for the permanent regulation of any matter within the jurisdiction of the city council as laid down in the city charter.

Owner shall be construed to mean and include every person who alone or severally with others (a) has legal title to any building or land; or (b) has care, charge, or control of any building or land in any capacity, including but not limited to, agent, executor, executrix, administrator, administratrix, trustee or guardian of the estate of the holder of the legal title, or (c) is a lessee under a written letting agreement; or (d) mortgagee in possession; or (e) is a agent, trustee or other person appointed by the courts.

Regulation or regulations shall mean the rule, or rules of any officer, board or commission, excluding the city council, which is or are designed for the permanent regulation of any matter within the jurisdiction of the said board, commission, or officer as laid down by the city charter, the administrative code, or these ordinances.

Street or way or highway shall include streets, highways, avenues, roads, alleys, sidewalks, lanes, viaducts and all other public ways in the street, including any bridge which is part thereof, all of which shall have been decreed, dedicated or accepted by the city.

In the construction of this code and of all ordinances, the following rules of construction shall be observed, unless inconsistent with the manifest intent of the council or the context of the ordinance clearly requires otherwise:

(a) Computation of time. The time within which an act is to be done shall be computed by excluding the first and including the last calendar day, and if the last day is a Sunday or a legal holiday, that day shall not be counted in the computation.

(d) Delegation of authority. Whenever a provision of these ordinances appears requiring the head of a department or some other officer of the city to do some act or perform some duty, or granting some right to such official, it shall be construed to authorize such department head or officer to designate, delegate and authorize subordinates to do the required act or perform the required duty, or it shall grant to them such right, unless the terms of the provisions designate otherwise.

(e) Gender. A word importing only the male gender shall extend and be construed as to apply to the female gender and to firms, partnerships and corporations, as well as to males. A word importing the female gender only shall extend and be construed as to apply to the male gender and to firms, partnerships and corporations as well as to females.

It is hereby declared that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this code are severable; and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this code shall be declared unconstitutional, invalid or inoperative by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections of these ordinances.

The catch-lines of the several sections of these ordinances printed in boldface type are intended as mere catchwords to indicate the contents of the sections, and shall not be deemed to be taken to be titles of such sections nor any part thereof.

Pursuant to section 9-9 of the Charter of the city of Chelsea, 1994, for the year following the initial review of the city charter, under section 9-8 of the Charter, and at five year intervals thereafter, the city council shall cause to be prepared a proposed recodification of all city ordinances, and any revisions thereto deemed appropriate or necessary. The city council shall adopt the proposed revision or recodification with or without amendment prior to the expiration of the calendar year in which such recodification and revisions are submitted to the council. Such revisions or recodification shall be prepared under the supervision of the city solicitor, or if the city council so directs, by special counsel retained for such purposes.

(a) Any person who violates a provision of these ordinances or of any ordinance of the city, whether included in these ordinances or any hereafter enacted, whereby any act or thing is enjoined, or prohibited or required, shall unless other provision is expressly made, be liable for a penalty as set forth in subsection (c) herein for each offense; provided, however, that whenever a higher penalty is permitted under the General Laws of Massachusetts, such higher penalty shall be the maximum penalty for each offense; and provided, further, that this section shall not preclude the city from proceedings to restrain the violation of any provision of these ordinances by injunction where such proceeding is more apt. In all instances, except as otherwise provided, each day a violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.

(b) Whoever violates any provision of these ordinances, the violation of which is subject to a specific penalty, may also be penalized by a non-criminal disposition as provided in the General Laws, chapter 40, § 21D. The non-criminal method of disposition may also be used for violations of any rule or regulation of any municipal officer, board or department, which is subject to a specific penalty.

In the absence of a specific schedule of penalties, as provided for in subsection (c), all ordinances whether included in these ordinances or any hereafter enacted, may be enforced by police officers through non-criminal disposition as deemed appropriate according to the following schedule:

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of the section (a) or (b) of this section 1-7, it is the intention of this subsection that the following ordinances, and regulations are to be included within the scope of the non-criminal disposition for violation of ordinances according to Chapter 40, section 21D of the General Laws. The specific penalties, as listed herein, shall apply in such cases. The following municipal personnel shall be enforcing persons for the purposes of this subsection. Enforcing persons may, in their sole discretion, issue a written warning, in lieu of a fine, for first time violations.

These Ordinances shall refer only to the omission or commission of acts within the territorial limits of the city and to that territory outside the city over which the city has jurisdiction or control by virtue of any constitutional or Charter provisions or any law.

All ordinances shall be recorded legibly by the city clerk without interlineation or erasure in a book to be kept for that purpose made of suitable paper with proper margins and index, which book shall be preserved in the office of the city clerk, and open for public inspection during the business hours of city hall.

Upon final passage, notice of every ordinance, appropriation order or loan authorization shall be published by the city clerk in at least one newspaper of general circulation within the city within fourteen days, and posted on the city bulletin board. Any such publication notice required shall state the summary of the finally enacted ordinance or ordinances, appropriation order or loan authorization, and the times and places at which copies of such measures may be obtained or reviewed by the public.

It shall be unlawful for anyone to improperly change or amend, by additions or deletions, any part or portion of these Ordinances, or to alter or tamper with these Ordinances in any manner whatsoever which will cause the law of the city of Chelsea to be misrepresented thereby. Any one violating this section shall be subject to a fine of not more than three hundred dollars ($300.00).

(a) All ordinances passed subsequent to the adoption of these ordinances, which may amend, repeal or in way affect the same may be numbered in accordance with the numbering system of these ordinances and printed for inclusion herein. In the case of repealed chapters, sections and subsections or any part thereof by subsequent ordinances, such repealed portions may be excluded from these ordinances by omission from reprinted pages affected thereby. The subsequent ordinance(s) as numbered and printed or omitted, in the case of repeal, shall be prima facie evidence of such subsequent ordinance(s), until such time that these ordinances and subsequent ordinance(s) numbered or omitted are readopted as a new ordinances by the city council.

(b) Amendment to any of the provisions of these ordinances shall be made by amending such provisions by specific reference to the section number of this ordinances in substantially the following language: That section _________ of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Chelsea, Massachusetts, is hereby amended to read as follows:..... The new provisions should then be set out in full as desired.

(c) At least once in every year, the city clerk shall publish the amended language of this code on the appropriate pages, so that they may be inserted in place of the original pages. The codes and updates so published shall be the official version of this code. (Amended 3-10-97)

The following shall be the device of the corporate seal of the city: A representation within a circle of a shield surmounted by a star, the shield bearing upon it the representation of an American Indian chief and wigwams; at the right of the shield, a sailboat such as was formerly used for ferriage; at the left of the shield, a view of the city and a steam ferryboat; under the shield, the word Winnisimmet; around the shield, the words Chelsea, settled 1624; a Town 1739; a City 1857.

This article establishes detailed standards of conduct for officials and employees of the city of Chelsea, subsequent to chapter 268A, section 23 of the Massachusetts General Laws. The basic rules of conduct set forth in chapter 268 and 268A of the General Laws also apply to all city officials and employees.

City contractor. The words City contractor shall mean any person (including agents or employees acting within the scope of their employment) who is paid from the city treasury or under city auspices, for goods or services, regardless of the nature of the relationship of such person to the city for purposes other than this chapter.

Contract management authority. The words contract management authority shall mean personal involvement in or direct supervisory responsibility for the formulation or execution of a city contract, including without limitation, the preparation of specifications, evaluation of bids or proposals, negotiation of contract terms or supervision of performance.

Economic interest. The words economic interest shall mean a financial interest, whether vested or contingent, legal or beneficial, with a present fair market value of greater than two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00), which is distinguishable from that of the public generally.

Gift. The word gift shall mean a delivery of goods, payment, entertainment, subscription, advance services or anything of value, unless consideration of equal or greater value is received. If items are furnished or services are rendered for less than the fair market value, the difference between the fair market value and the prices shall be treated as a gift. Gift shall not include a political contribution reported as required by law, a commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course of business, anything of value received by inheritance, or a gift received from a family member or from a relative within the third degree of consanguinity of the reporting person or of the reporting persons spouse or from the spouse of any such relative.

Relative. The word relative shall mean a person who is related to an official or employee as spouse, as a descendent of any grandparent of such official or employee, whether by the whole-or half-blood or by adoption, or as spouse of any of the foregoing and any person who resides with an employee or an official.

No official or employee shall intimidate, threaten, coerce, or otherwise take adverse action against any individual who in good faith makes a complaint to the city manager or the state ethics commission regarding any alleged violation of this or the state ethics code by any official or employee of the city.

No official or employee shall make, participate in making or in any way attempt to use such officials or such employees position, influence or power to influence or affect any city governmental decision or action in which such official or employee knows or has reason to know that such official or employee has any economic interest distinguishable from its effect on the public generally or, with respect to the city council, any economic interest distinguishable from its effect on all councilors generally.

No current or former official or employee shall use or disclose, other than in the performance of his official duties and responsibilities, or as may be required by law, confidential information gained in the course of or by reason of his position or employment. For purposes of this section, confidential information means any information that is not made available to the general public on request or could not be obtained pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Act, chapter 66 of the General Laws, as amended.

No elected official or his or her spouse shall have a financial interest, directly or indirectly, in the name of the official or employee or in the name of any other person in any contract, work or business of the city or in the sale to the city of any property or service, whenever the expense, price or consideration of the contract, work, business or sale is paid with funds belonging to or administered by the city, or is authorized by ordinance. Compensation for property taken pursuant to the citys eminent domain power shall not constitute a financial interest within the meaning of this section. Unless sold pursuant to a process of competitive bidding following public notice, no elected official or employee shall have a financial interest in the purchase of any property that (i) belongs to the city or a city agency, or (ii) is sold for taxes or assessments, or (iii) is sold by virtue of legal process at the suit of the city. No employee or appointed official nor their spouse shall engage in a transaction described in this section, unless the matter is wholly unrelated to the employee or officials city duties and responsibilities.

(a) No official or employee may appoint or advocate for employment, in any city agency in which said official or employee serves, or over which he exercises authority, supervision, or control, any person (i) who is a relative of said official or employee, or (ii) in exchange for or in consideration of the employment of any of said officials or employees relatives by any other official or employee.

(c) No official or employee shall use or permit the use of his position to assist any relative in securing employment or contracts with persons over whom the employee or official exercises contract management authority. The employment of or contracting with a relative of such a city official or employee by such a person within six months prior to, during the term of, or six months subsequent to the period of a city contract shall be evidence that said employment or contract was obtained in violation of this article.

Members of the city council shall not make loans, gifts of value equal to or exceeding fifty dollars, offers of employment or future employment or of business or investment opportunities to the city manager, to his assistants, to heads of city departments or agencies, to the city solicitor and assistant city solicitors or to members of boards or commissions involved in the granting of variances, permits, licenses or other such discretionary, or adjudicatory functions.

School committee members shall not make loans, gifts of value equal to or exceeding fifty dollars, offers of employment or future employment, except within the discharge of their official capacity as a school committee, or of business or investment opportunities to the superintendent, assistant superintendents, the business manager, the personnel director, the principals of the Chelsea public schools, consultant or legal advisers contracted to the school department, or to any other city employees.

(a) Any city employee or official shall be entitled to the opinion of the city solicitor upon any question arising under this chapter relating to the duties, responsibilities and interests of such person. All requests for such opinions by a subordinate municipal employee shall be made in confidence directly to the city manager who shall in turn request in confidence such opinion of the city solicitor on behalf of such person, and all members of boards or commissions and chief officers or heads of municipal agencies may make direct confidential requests for such opinions on their own account. The city solicitor shall file such opinion in writing with the city clerk and such opinion shall be a matter of public record; however, no opinion will be rendered by the city solicitor except upon the submission of detailed existing facts which pertain a question of actual or prospective violation of any provision of this article.

(a) Any employee or official who violates this article shall be subject to appropriate discipline by the appointing authority including suspension, termination or censure, consistent with any requirements of the state civil service law and the city charter, as well as to civil or criminal prosecution under any other applicable state laws.

(b) Alleged violations of the state ethics law, or this article by the city councilors, members of the school committee, the superintendent of schools, and the city manager shall be directly filed with the State Ethics Commission.

(c) Any city councilor who has been convicted of a knowing or willful violation of the state ethics law, or this article shall be deemed to have vacated his office from the date of conviction, and shall not be eligible to serve in any other elective or appointive office or position under the city.

(f) Any permit, license, ruling, determination or other official action taken in violation of this article shall be void; provided however, that in the event that voiding would substantially damage the city or innocent third parties, then the city entity responsible for such official action may, subject to the prior approval of the city manager, preserve, in whole or in part, the permit, license, ruling, determination or other action.

In the event of any conflict or inconsistency of this chapter with any state law, the provision of broadest or most strict coverage shall control. No provision of this chapter shall be construed so as to be inconsistent with state law.

The city clerk shall cause a copy of this code of ethics to be distributed to every elected and appointed public official within thirty (30) days of their entering upon the duties of their office or employment. The personnel director shall cause a copy of this code of ethics to be distributed to all other employees of the city within thirty (30) days of their entering upon the duties of their employment.

In order to assure that all officers and employees of the city are familiar with their responsibilities and obligations under this code of ethics and the state ethics law, the city manager shall at regular intervals provide for training on the meaning and application of the ethics code, and every elected and appointed public official shall be required to attend at least one such session upon appointment or election to municipal office.

(a) No person shall drink or possess in any open or partially consumed container any alcoholic beverage, as defined in chapter 138, section 1, of the General Laws, including possession of any empty or partial container of alcoholic beverages that is open, and in the possession or control of such person while on, in or upon any public way or upon any way to which the public has a right of access, or any place to which members of the public have access as invitees or licensees, park or playground, or private land or place without consent of the owner or person in control thereof. A police officer may arrest, without a warrant, any person who in his presence violates this section.

(b) No person shall serve or consume any alcoholic beverages on city-owned property or within city-owned buildings. No person shall serve or consume any alcoholic beverages at any municipal event or municipal function held on city owned property or within city owned buildings.

(c) Whoever is found to begin violation this section shall be liable to a criminal fine not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100.00) for the first offense, two hundred dollars ($200.00) for the second offense and three hundred dollars ($300.00) for the third and each subsequent offenses, and shall otherwise be subject to the provisions of section 1-7.

Whoever willfully, intentionally and without right, or wantonly, maliciously and without cause, destroys, defaces, mars or injures the walls, or any other part of any building, or an appurtenance of such building, or any monument, tablet, vase, statue or other device erected to mark a public place, to commemorate an historic event, or any equipment, apparatus or fixture located on public property, or any playground apparatus or equipment, located in a public park or playground or upon any fence, post, awning or any private dwelling or other building or any timber, tree, or wood, ferns, flowers, shrubs or produce shall, upon conviction, be punished by the maximum criminal fine allowed by state law, in addition shall forfeit the cost of repairing, replacing, removing or obliterating such defacement, whichever is deemed appropriate by the chief of police, and shall in all other respects be subject to the provisions of section 1-7.

Whoever willfully, intentionally and without right or wantonly and without cause, writes upon, injures, defaces, tears or destroys a book, plate, picture, engraving, map, newspaper, magazine, pamphlet, manuscript or statue which belongs to the city, or other public or incorporated library shall be subject to all fines, and penalties allowed by law, and in addition shall forfeit the cost of repairing, replacing, removing or obliterating such defacement, whichever in the city managers opinion is appropriate.

In order to protect the health and safety of the residents of the city, no retail food establishment or premises within the city shall be used for the combined purposes of dispensing at retail, food for human consumption and the selling of gasoline or other inflammable products, unless the products are at a minimum of one hundred feet (100') apart. The distances shall be computed from the location point of storage tanks, or fuel pumps, whichever is closer, to the front door of where the food for retail purposes is stored for sale purposes. There is excepted from this section, coin vending machines for dispensing of prepackaged and prepared food and drink products.

(a) Findings. The city council finds and determines that graffiti on public and private walls and buildings is obnoxious, a public nuisance, and it tends to remain and dilapidate buildings unless the city causes it to be removed. Other properties then become the target of graffiti resulting in entire neighborhoods littered with graffiti and becoming less desirable places in which to be, and reside, all to the detriment of the city. Graffiti is inimical and destructive of the rights and values of private property owners as well as the total community.

(b) Purpose. The purpose of this ordinance is to help prevent the spread of graffiti and to establish a program for its removal from public and private property within the city limits. It is the purpose of this ordinance to provide additional enforcement tools to protect public and private property from acts of vandalism and defacement, including the application of graffiti on walls, natural objects and structures. Such acts are destructive of the rights and values of property owners as well as the entire community.

The existence of any surface of a structure on a parcel of land which has been defaced with graffiti after removal more than five (5) times in twelve (12) months is a public and private nuisance, and may be abated by minor modifications thereto, to the immediate area surrounding same, according to the provisions and procedures herein.

(d) Defacement prohibited. Whoever willfully, intentionally and without right, or wantonly, maliciously and without cause, destroys, defaces, mars or injures the walls, or any other part of any building, or an appurtenance of such building, or any monument, tablet, vase, statue or other device erected to mark a public place, to commemorate an historic event, or any equipment, apparatus or fixture located on public property, or any playground apparatus or equipment, located in a public park or playground or upon any fence, post, awning or any private dwelling or other building or any timber, tree, or wood, ferns, flowers, shrubs or produce shall, upon conviction, be punished by the maximum criminal fine allowed by state law, in addition shall forfeit the cost of repairing, replacing, removing or obliterating such defacement, whichever is deemed appropriate by the chief of police.

(f) Removal of graffiti by perpetrator. Any person applying graffiti on a public or private property shall have the duty to remove the graffiti within twenty-four (24) hours after notice by the city or private owner of the property involved. Such notice shall be done in a manner prescribed by the chief of police, the director of the inspectional services or any additional city department head, as authorized by the city council. Any person applying graffiti shall be responsible for the removal or for the payment of the removal. Failure of any person to remove graffiti or pay for the removal shall constitute an additional violation of this ordinance. Where graffiti is applied by an unemancipated minor, the parents or legal guardian shall also be responsible for such removal or for the payment for the removal.

(g) Removal of graffiti by property owner. If the graffiti is not removed by the perpetrator according to subsection (f) of this section, it shall, unless otherwise exempted by subsection (h) of this section, be the responsibility of the property owner to remove the graffiti according to the following provisions:

It is unlawful for any person who is the owner or who has primary responsibility for control of property or for repair or maintenance of property in the city to permit property that is defaced with graffiti to remain defaced for a period of ten (10) days after service by first class mail of notice of the defacement. The notice shall contain the following information:

(3) A statement that the graffiti must be removed within ten (10) days after receipt of the notice and that if the graffiti is not abated within that time the city will declare the property to be a public nuisance, subject to abatement by the city; and

(4) A statement, if the director of inspectional services so directs, that said surface or surfaces shall be required to be retrofitted, at the cost of the property owner, not to exceed a total cost of five hundred dollars ($500.00), with such features or qualities as may be established by the director of inspectional services as necessary to reduce the attractiveness of the surface for graffiti, or as necessary to permit more convenient or efficient removal thereof.

(2) The property owner or responsible party has an active graffiti defacement program, and has scheduled the removal of the graffiti as part of that program, in which case it shall be unlawful to permit such property to remain defaced with graffiti for a period of fifteen (15) days after service by first class mail of notice of the defacement.

(i) Right of city to require removal. Whenever the city becomes aware, or is notified and determines that graffiti is so located on public or privately owned property viewable for a public or quasi-public place within the city, the city manager is authorized to use public funds for the removal of same, or for the painting or repairing of same, but shall not authorize or undertake or provide for the painting or repairing of anymore extensive area than where the graffiti is located, unless the city manager, or his designee, determines in writing that a more extensive area is required to be repaired or repainted in order to avoid an aesthetic disfigurement to the neighborhood or community, or unless the responsible party agrees to pay for the costs of repainting or repairing the more extensive area.

(j) Right of entry on private property. Prior to entering upon private property or property owned by a public entity other than the city for the purpose of graffiti removal the city shall attempt to secure the consent of the property owner or responsible party and a release of the city from liability for property damage or personal injury. If the property owner or responsible party fails to remove the offending graffiti within the time specified by this ordinance, or if the city has requested consent to remove or paint over the offending graffiti and the property owner or responsible party has refused consent for entry on terms acceptable to the city and consistent with the terms of this section, the city shall commence abatement and cost recovery proceeding for the graffiti removal according to the provisions of subsection (k) of this section.